ASD should stop Park Avenue project to build public confidence now

The Amityville School District is scrambling to complete the Park Avenue renovation project in time for September’s opening day. Undoubtedly that is an important target date, particularly since the project is already a year behind.

What is more important, however, is the school district’s obligation now to build public confidence—confidence in the project, confidence in the way it is being completed and confidence in the people who are responsible for seeing the project through. For that reason, we believe the parents and residents and staff of the Amityville School District need to hear— from an independent voice—that this building will be safe and secure for them and for their children.

That’s why we believe the school board should move immediately to hire a contractor/engineer to review the entire building, determine where the project stands and what needs to be done to get it completed.

We believe this move is vital because building public confidence now is even more important than completing the building. A series of mistakes by the school district, its management firm and its architects has all but left the public scrambling to make sense out of what is happening here.

First there was the mistake involving the brick on the front of the new building, which has still not been adequately explained.

Then the roofer defaults on his contract and the board is not advised of the problem until six months later.

Then, thousands and thousands of dollars in roofing material is damaged or destroyed.

Then, the interior of the building, old and new, is damaged by water leaking from the unfinished roof. Interior flooring and newly constructed walls become soaked and warp.

Then the board stops the project because major concerns are raised and votes to begin it against without taking any action on any of those concerns.

What is more troubling is that at no point does anyone assume adequate responsibility for these mistakes, nor is the public given sufficient explanations about how they are being handled. All of this leaves a very angry, frustrated and worried public to wonder: What in heaven’s name is going on?

This project was to be the school district’s shining hour; it was supposed to rebuild the confidence of the public toward its schools, which had eroded over the years. It was supposed to set a new standard for Amityville Schools, and build a showplace from which many of the district’s other problems would be addressed with the same efficiency and sterling success.

Sadly that has not happened and, instead, the ties between the school district and the public it serves have become tattered and threadbare. Political bickering and stubborn denial by board members, and a lack of leadership by school officials has only made that worse.

It’s time this school board act as it has been legally charged to act—with responsibility to the public. The board must immediately hire an engineering/contracting firm to come in, evaluate the work already completed, give the district and the public an assessment of where the project stands today, and outline a time line of what needs to be done to complete the renovation.

We understand that time is of the essence, particularly since the district is making no alternate plans for September’s opening, but the issue of building public confidence is more important.

Whenever our children finally walk through those doors, the public needs to know they will be safe and it is the legal and moral obligation of everyone from the Superintendent to the School Board to make sure they are. Wishes, hopes, promises and visions are no substitute for making the tough choices and doing the right thing now.